


A Ghost in the Night

by PrinceOfAlderaan



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Post-Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Fix-It, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:22:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22228600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrinceOfAlderaan/pseuds/PrinceOfAlderaan
Relationships: Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 6
Kudos: 68
Collections: TROS Reylo Fix-it Fics





	A Ghost in the Night

The suns were setting and painted an orange glow across the vast, desolate landscape. Rey looked to the horizon, cradling the wrapped cloth in her arms. She felt her hands tremble—an unshakeable feeling that hadn’t faded since…

_Be with me_.

Rey closed her eyes and knelt to the ground, feeling the grains of sand fill the space between her fingers. She felt whole for a fleeting moment…

_Be with me_.

Victory had come at a great cost. She could have stayed behind, celebrating with the others, but it wouldn’t feel right. She had one final task to complete. She couldn’t move on so readily when…

_Be with me._

… her other half. Rey extended herself into the Force.

_Where are you?_

Rey opened her eyes. Her hand had stopped shaking.

Only the suns. Only the sand.

She laid the package on the ground and unfurled the cloth, finding what started it all: the lightsaber of Anakin Skywalker.

The ancient blade was passed on to his son.

Then his grandson.

The tremble began once more.

_That lightsaber… it belongs to me._

Rey looked around, searching for the whisper and questioning whether it was reality or merely echoes of the past: days she would readily revisit if only just to see…

_Be with me_.

Leia’s saber rested just as peacefully, the corner of the cloth flapping gently as the Tatooine winds began rolling in off the Dune Sea. These were the final remnants of the Skywalkers. The final remnants of a family that had taken her in—a family she had tried so desperately to protect. She couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe things could’ve played out differently.

Could she have saved Leia? Could she have saved…

_Ben? Be with me._

She thought bringing these sabers to this place would help her find him. It hadn’t.

She took one final look before wrapping the cloth back over the sabers and pulling a tight knot. One day, these could be found. One day, they might tell a new story.

The sabers sunk beneath the sands.

Then, the trembling in her hand stopped.

Her pulse quickened.

A bead of water rolled down her cheek as time stood still.

She felt him.

_All paths lead me back to you._

She lifted her eyes slowly, taking in his entire form. She couldn’t resist looking, even though it came with renewed heartache.

His faint blue glow shimmered against the darkening sky as if he were the brightest star. He stood tall, no longer dressed in the dark clothes she had left behind on Exegol.

These new white garments were loose fitting and revealed the slightest hint of his bare chest beneath, as if no longer constricting a soul that, for so long, had wanted to be free of his pain.

It was the ghost of Ben Solo.

_Ben, I’m sorry—_

_You did what you had to do. We all made sacrifices._

_I’ll tell your story. The galaxy will know._

_They may never believe you._

_They will… in time._

Silence. He stepped towards her with footsteps that were as quiet as space itself. He felt so close; it was as if she could reach out and grab him… continuing where they left off.

_How does it feel?_

_How does what feel?_

_What comes after?_

_It feels—_

Ben’s voice caught in his throat. His eye twitched ever so slightly. His lip quivered. He looked scared; he looked unsure of what came next in his story. Everything was still so raw to him.

He looked into her eyes, and she looked back into his.

His body relaxed.

_It’s not as painful when you’re near._

She wanted to say something—anything—but she was still lost in those eyes.

She felt at home. She missed him.

Ben noticed this was hard on her, as it was for him.

He missed her.

_Why are you burying the sabers?_

Rey shook free of her trance and looked down to see the sands had settled. At a glance, she couldn’t even tell where they had been placed.

_This part in the story is finished. It’s time I carve out my own place in all of this._

She unclipped the saber from her hip and held it out for Ben. For so long, Rey had carried the staff with her. It had provided her protection during Jakku’s coldest nights—a friend that always stuck around.

Now, it carried a whole new meaning.

With the flick of the switch, the beam ignited, providing a soft glow in the looming night.

_Yellow? Why—?_

_Sometimes, even the darkest of things show glimpses of light. All it takes is hope._

_Did you go back—?_

_Yes, I found it. Took some time, but I healed it. I’ll always have a piece of you with me._

He smiled. His eyes watered.

_Ben, I’m sorry. The Skywalkers are…_

_Are what?_

_Gone._

_My family’s story has ended, but what they fought for hasn’t. What I fought for… in the end._

The end. There had been too little time to exchange words on Exegol, which begged the question that had been on her mind since.

_What were you thinking?_

_When?_

_When you saw me as I saw you. When I gave you—_

_You were right._

_What?_

_That’s what I was thinking. You were right. That I’d be the one to turn. Isn’t that what you said? “Solid and clear?” I came back to you._

Rey had always known.

_I don’t want you to go. Not again. Stay with me._

_No one’s ever really gone, Rey. Like you said, you’ll have a piece of me, right?_

_Yes._

_Then you’re not alone. Carry the light... as you always have._

She bit her lip, trying to hold back everything that was bottling up.

Ben did the same. He wished she could see him as he once was. Not like this.

Even through his anguish, she felt peace and purpose—a calm feeling within Ben despite facing the unknown. She had sensed the same in Master Skywalker when he moved beyond.

It was this instinct that brought her comfort.

She felt his attention drawn elsewhere and turned to find a curious bystander standing in the distance. Strangely enough, she held flowers. Rey felt this wasn’t her first time visiting.

“Who were you talking to?”

It hurt saying it.

“The man I loved. Still love…

… His family lived here.”

“There’s been no one for so long.”

“I’m sorry, I was just passing through. I can be on my way.”

Rey stood up and was about to turn towards Ben—

“What brought you here?”

Rey started to speak but held back.

She thought she had come here to say goodbye, but she knew there was more to it.

She had this feeling that, somewhere out beyond and unbeknownst to Ben, there was a place where she would find him.

“Starting a new beginning.”

“Well I hope you find what you’re looking for….”

Rey waited.

“Oh. I’m Rey.”

“Rey who?”

Rey hesitated, unsure how to answer.

_Say it._

The depth in his voice sent chills up her spine. She took one last glance at Ben.

_You know who you are, Rey._

Rey smiled.

_But you’ll be with me?_

Ben smiled back and nodded.

_Always_.

Rey confidently turned back to the woman, and spoke her name.


End file.
